Sensory Bandwagon

I must admit, I spend way too much time browsing Montessori/Homeschool/Waldorf blogs for home and classroom ideas.  I recently stumbled across some bloggers who create something called "sensory bins".  In a nutshell, they're plastic tubs based on a chosen theme, and filled with interesting, textured materials.  The sensory bins create the possibility of hours of open-ended play, as well as, practice in all the Montessori goodies- spooning, pouring, scooping, sorting, classifying.  The blog I found most inspiring was
Counting Coconuts. Needless, to say, I've jumped on the bandwagon.

This is not an activity that I would incorporate into the classroom, unless it was for a summer camp type of environment, but it's great for home.  The theme I chose was "Beach" because we'll be hitting the shore in a few weeks.  The only thing I had to purchase for this bin was the base material, which is aquarium gravel (in place of sand- not brave enough for the real thing yet).  I found the gravel at Walmart for $5.  Everything else in the bin was either from our playroom or I had in storage for practical life activities:

• shells (real and purchased)
• aquarium plant
• water block
• spray bottles
• small cups
• blue and green gems
• wooden scoop
• scented wax slices
• plastic fish
• plastic whales
• mermaid

Forever the Montessori guide, I set up a few "sensory bin groundrules" before we got started:

1. All children who play with the bin will be active members of the clean-up crew.
2. Small objects do not go in or near the mouth/nose/ears, etc.
3. We respect each other while using the bin.  Sharing is a great way to show respect.

A blanket or towel should be placed under the bin for easy clean up.  I included tiny spray bottles (hanging over the side of the bin) to add a water element to the beach.  I told the girls if they wanted to spray outside of the bin, they must remember to bring the bin outside FIRST.

A sensory bin would not truly be "sensorial" without an olfactory element.  I included small green wax slices called "Coconut Lime" scented wax melts.  They add such a tropical scent to the bin.  I've had them in my bathroom closet for years.  I'm so happy they're finally being used!  Even the dogs got in on the fun...

My Five Senses

Last Thursday and Friday, we discussed our five senses in great detail.  One of our assistants brought in some plants from her garden so the children were able to differentiate between basil, lavender, and mint, among others.  We placed them in glass bottles, added self-corrected stickers on the bottom, and by Friday we had smelling bottles! 

On Friday, we spoke specifically about our sense of taste and the tongue.  We looked at a diagram of the tongue and discussed sweet, salty, sour and bitter.  Of course, to truly understand this concept we needed a taste test.  We used paper plates divided into four sections.  The children tasted sugar for sweet, salt (of course) for salty, lemon for sour, and unsweetened chocolate for bitter.  That last one was hysterical.  After three cheers for chocolate, and a brief explanation that this is chocolate WITHOUT SUGAR, the children tried the bitter food and were severely disappointed!  Actually, disappointed isn't the word, it was more like disgusted.  I wish I could have posted some of the faces we saw.  We took a vote and zero children like bitter food!

Parents can get children more involved by reviewing the diagram of the tongue here.

Our Listening Walk

Today, we spoke about nature and the place in our classroom where we collect nature. The children were encouraged to find nature at home and bring it into the school to share. The nature is then placed in our large "nature bowl" for observation.

To expand on the concept of nature and enjoying nature, we read the book The Listening Walk.

I just adore this book, probably more than the children! This little girl goes for a walk with her father in the city and in a park. Her daddy's shoes go "clip, clop, clip, clop" and her sneakers are silent! The author goes through and describes all of the sounds that they here. The children love to hear me imitating a pigeon in the city and a duck at the park!

After we read the story, we went out into the community for a "listening walk". The children walked silently as they listened to the world. Afterwards, we sat outside and wrote down a list of the sounds we heard. Here are a few noises that were noticed:

• the wind in a tree
• GC's rain jacket
• a UPS truck
• a cricket
• my flip flops
• a hawk
• a garage door

I know the activity made an impact on some of the children because they made comments throughout the day about the fish tank noise or the sound of someone sweeping up after snack. It's important for children to become aware of their surroundings and to refine their senses. That is, after all, one of the goals of primary Montessori education!

Ice Cooking

"Ice cooking" is a favorite outdoor pastime in this household. Simply place a few containers with ice cubes on a table or even in the grass outside. Add a bit of water, a few spoons, ladles and measuring cups and you're set. This is a great sensorial activity for the youngest of children and a fun science lesson for the older ones. G likes to see how long it takes for the cubes to melt in the sun compared to in the shade, and g prefers to simply mix and pour!

For any newer readers, I use the letter "G" to refer to my 4-year-old and "g" to refer to my 1-year-old.

Have fun!

A Lesson in Exploration

I've been spending some of my summer down-time reviewing my Montessori albums, as many Mont. teacher do (don't worry, I do relax and have fun too!). There are 165 lessons in Sensorial alone, so reviewing lessons at least every year is a must.

I wanted to practice a few lessons, so I called on my guinea pig- G. She's a trooper and put up with Mommy giving her lessons in the summer (of course I picked a rainy day). By the end though, she was asking for more! See, learning is fun!

Her favorite lesson was Color Box #2, Game #4. After the child has mastered the second color box, she can take part in the extension activities and games. This game encourages the child to explore the classroom with one color tablet in hand in order to match the shade to an object. I was very impressed with her creativity. I love how she matched the yellow water tank from the farm. And, in her eyes, the metal scissors match the gray tablet...




This lesson is an excellent way to expand the possibilities of this work, and to get the child to look at the classroom from a completely different perspective. You can try this at home using paint swatches from Home Depot. Check these links for the appropriate colors: Color Box #1, Color Box #2 and Color Box #3.

Flea Market Treasures

I was perusing my church carnival's flea market leftovers and stumbled across a Montessori teacher's treasure chest! Here's what I found...

This miniature bamboo book stand will fit perfectly in the Cultural area of the classroom. It will showcase Aline Wolf's Cosmic Wonder books beautifully. My kids (when I refer to "my kids" it will typically mean the children in my class. My actual kids will be referred to as "G"-the big girl and "g"- the little girl) adore these little books and sometimes choose one to copy and take home. When I say copy, I literally mean they sit down with a blank booklet and hand write the entire book, along with illustrations. Poor kids, little do they know they can go online and buy one copy for about $6!

...as if I don't have enough miniature baskets in my storage area. I just couldn't resist.

It's hard to see in the picture, but this is a bag of small wooden apples and a bag of sea glass. Perfect for Practical Life activities in September (apples) and June (sea glass).

This pint-size pitcher and bowl will make good use in the classroom for fingertip sensitizing before using the sandpaper letters or touch boards.

All of this for a whopping $2.50!!